By Rob Duca
Years ago, I played in a celebrity pro-am tournament at The Captains with former PGA Tour pro Jim Hallet. I was excited at the opportunity and looked forward to watching how a tour pro hit the ball. Hallet was certainly impressive, but I wasn’t awestruck by long drives or irons that stopped inches from the hole. When the round was over, I learned he had carded 68. And I immediately knew why. As I thought back on his round, I realized that every time he missed a green in regulation, he wedged the ball close and made par.
That is the secret, and with a little help, you too can learn to hit your wedges close consistently and save a ton of strokes around the green.
Here’s how.
- Setup Matters
Wedge shots are typically between 40 and 70 yards. Regardless of the distance, setup is crucial. Position the ball slightly in front of center for full wedge shots and a bit more forward for short shots. Make sure to maintain a slight weight shift towards the lead foot, especially for short shots, and narrow your stance for stability and control. In addition, take one more club than you think is necessary and grip down on the handle.
- Stay Smooth
Tempo is always critical, and making a smooth, controlled swing will help keep the clubface square at impact and result in more precise distance and accuracy. Use your body rotation to generate power and control the swing path, and match your swing tempo to the shot distance and desired trajectory.
- Get Your Weight onto the Lead Foot
To hit your wedges consistently, make sure your weight is more on the lead foot, which will allow you to make contact with the ball as the club is on a downward path. Typically, the weight distribution is 70/30, but practice at different levels to find what feels right for you.
- Narrow Ball Position
If the ball is positioned too far back, you won’t hit it clean and you might flare it to the right, if you’re a right-handed golfer. Placing the ball too far forward can result in thin and fat shots. It’s best to take a narrow stance and center the ball in the middle of your feet.
- Use the Bounce
The design of a wedge helps it slide through the golf ball and prevents it from digging too deeply into the turf. The wedge bounce also helps on bunker shots. Having a variety of bounce options throughout your wedge set is often the smartest option.
- Swing Like You Mean It
The clubhead needs to be accelerating through impact to achieve a cleaner strike, a square clubface, and better spin and control. Think about taking a one third backswing and two thirds follow-through.
- Work on the Wrists
The lead wrist should be flexed through impact with a good amount of shaft lean, which creates a lower ball flight where the ball can roll out to the hole. Keep more of a flat wrist position through impact for pitch shots, resulting in a higher trajectory.
- Experiment with Different Length Swings
Take out each of the wedges in your bag and learn to hit a full, three-quarters, half, and quarter swing shot with each. Record these distances so you have a general idea of how far they go. You can use these different numbers the next time you are on the course without having to worry about those awkward yardages.
- Choose the Right Loft
Every wedge shot does not call for the 56-degree club. Wedges with higher bounce and more loft are good for soft lies, sand and rough, but those with less bounce and loft will produce better results from clean or hard lies. If you use the wrong wedge for the job, you’ll have poor results.